Footnotes

Provenance
The Family of the Artist;
Acquired from the Enugu State Library Board;
A private collection.

Originally held in the East Central State Library in Enugu, the present work is historically significant in the post-colonial optimism that encapsulated the 1960's and 70's. Established by UNESCO in 1958 in response to the country's need for public libraries, the library was an example of the Nigerian government's motivation to champion Universal Primary Education in Post-colonial Nigeria. In the same sense, Okeke's work is characterised by a drive for cultural development. The artist himself was a pivotal figure in this education movement, teaching as the head of the Fine Art's department at the University of Nigeria between 1971 and 1985.

These incentives of art and cultural development were also reflected in the ethos of the Zaria Art Society, of which Okeke was a founding member in 1958. The ethos, coined Natural Synthesis, aimed to synthesise traditional Nigerian ideas and artistic motifs with new forms of expression. Okeke later described this as the Society's "major contribution":

"We envisioned a kind of synthesis that would bring art from our 'tribal' enclaves or ethnic cleavages and put them on the platform of national significance." (Okeke, August 31, 1997)

The present work is an exceptional example of this ethos. Zoomorphic images, depicted with calligraphic brushstrokes and Uli rooted symbolism are rendered with a bold palette to present this mural of Nigerian Modernism. Interested in Igbo culture, much of his work draws on themes from its folklore and mythology, but it also shows a modern stylistic influence.

Widely exhibited, Uche Okeke's work is held in major collections globally. Collections include the Smithsonian National Museum of African Art in Washington DC, The Museum of Modern Art in New York, and the National Gallery of Modern Art, Lagos.